Competition for talent is fierce, and today companies, are pulling out all the stops to attract new employees.
From strong rewards programs to competitive salaries, employers are rising to the challenge to make their businesses stand out from the rest. However, the process of stockpiling incentives – combined with the process of onboarding new employees – is a significant time sink for any organization.
To then lose an employee only months after an extensive recruitment process can be a huge blow to a business’s ego, not to mention the hours of productivity lost.
While incentive and reward programs are an added bonus for employees, they cannot be relied on as the sole reason an employee decides to stay with a company. Often times it’s the day-to-day interactions that can make or break an employee’s happiness. And the reality is that there are some actions that you might be doing right now that is pushing employees out the door.
Below are five (5) sure-fire ways to lose your best employees.
1. Ignore their development
Employees want to be able to grow in their positions. Without clear opportunities for personal and professional development, employees are likely to outgrow their current role quickly and move on to an organization that presents them with new challenges.
A common failure in companies today is the ability to proactively implement developmental programs for employees or providing them with new paths to expand their skill sets.
2. Micromanage them
Constantly looking over an employee’s shoulder is a direct way to demotivate them.
Not only are you creating self-doubt in the employee but you are also communicating to them that you don’t have complete faith that they will get the job done.
3. Keep employees in the dark
Creating a gap between management and employees can easily lead to workforce frustrations.
Not having regular and appropriate communication to employees opens the door to them fearing or assuming the worst, even when there is no basis for these feelings. Furthermore, lack of communication institutes a lack of confidence in the management team which can very quickly lead to distrust.
4. A lack of recognition
If you want employees to feel like their hard work goes unnoticed, provide them with zero recognition for a job well done. Sure you are paying the employee to do the job, but that does not mean that their hard work and willingness to go the extra mile should go unnoticed.
Missing repeat opportunities to pat an employee on the back can make them quickly want to set their sights on a job that they feel valued in.
5. Eliminate any kind of fun
Most of us spend the majority of our day time at work. Sure workplace productivity and efficiency are important to a sustainable business model but consider this – setting time aside to bond with co-workers.
The payback in workforce productivity and collaboration is enormous. Stepping away from the computer to partake in some workplace fun can refocus employees when it’s time to get back to work. Furthermore, employees want to feel bonded to a company and have camaraderie with their co-workers. Without that emotional connection in place, it’s easy for an employee to jump from one job to the next.
With such a strong focus on employee retention and engagement, taking the time to follow these simple steps can result in happy employees and increased longevity in the company.